Sunday Lunch At G & M

[Greenside]

Having read glowing reports on TV of G & M's apparently legendary Sunday buffet and viewing its almost un-findable status as a direct challenge to my navigational manhood, I decided to take the family off for a lunchtime trip today.

Finding it was a little tough but, armed with the map from the thread above, we made it by about 12:30 but from there the experience was all downhill. Walking into a small dining room full of people tucking into plates of appetising looking food and with a central table (the buffet?) devoid of everything but a few slices of pineapple, some potato salad and bread rolls, we were studiously ignored by the staff for what seemed like forever.

When we got someone to actually talk to us it went something like: "Yes, it's a buffet. Sit down, sit down", with a vague gesture something along the lines of the feeble wrist flapping motor bike passengers do when the 14 year old driving is about to turn sharply right across two lanes of traffic around the moat.

Well, having recently fallen victim to the World's Worst Moo Kata* due mainly to my wife's reluctance to about turn and leave on seeing the dismal fare sitting forlornly on the buffet, we weren't having any of that and went exploring to see if there was something that looked more promising. Out the back was another room with people eating, some packed sausages in a display fridge, an industrial cold store, some kind of filthy electrical equipment, an open drain and a couple of tables bearing some sausages, bread rolls and yet more potato salad.

Luckily a helpful farang diner, seeing we were confused and about to leave, told me to sit down and the "buffet" would be brought to us. Five minutes of being ignored later and with wife and son loaded up on sausages which seemed to be the only thing to eat, to our relief some plates of food arrived. What they brought were meals as you'd expect if you ordered a dish in a restaurant and they only brought two for the three of us so with no individual plates we resorted to sharing them as best we could. One of them was the fabled Schweinshaxe (Google it), fondly remembered from my many trips to Frankfurt. Which brings me to the old days...

Years ago, I used to smoke. A lot. Other than smelling like an ashtray and imagining this gawky teenager looked really cool waiting at lonely London bus stops in the rain with only a cigarette for company, one of the side effects was an almost complete loss of my sense of taste until I finally quit for ever.

The delicious looking Schweinshaxe had all the nice crispy roasted skin you could wish for and was the right shade of pink inside, but just one bite whisked me back thirty years to the time when everything tasted of nothing.

There was some Schnitzel that was OK (but mainly due to the gravy), and some so-so spaghetti that ran out after one plate had been delivered but sadly the pick of the table turned out to be the potato salad which just about sums it all up. Since all the fruit had run out by the time we came to desert, we filled up on (Walls) ice cream and asked for the bill.

When a man (the Thai who seemed to be in charge – no sign of Gunther unfortunately) arrived to assess the damage, he told us that we either had to eat the one and a half sausages remaining or pay extra for them. Needless to say I wasn't amused, especially given their total lack of organisation and helpfulness, and pointed out that not only was there no sign to inform us about the sausage police (don't know if that made it through translation but I enjoyed it) plus at the time we sat down they appeared to be the only thing to eat. The guy strode off into the room we'd been originally ignored in and two minutes later came back brandishing a notice trailing yellowing Scotch Tape that he had either found in the Difficult Customer Drawer or ripped from the wall. We laughed. He gave up.

Drive 40 kilometres to the middle of nowhere (although I admit it was pretty out there) to eat potato salad? I've no idea why our experience was so at odds with others on that thread but we won't be doing that again.

*I didn't bother to warn you about this one because it probably opened and closed in the same week.

[venturalaw]

Greenside, all I can say is thank you for the very well written heads-up. I'll certainly avoid the place.

On another note, I fortunately discovered the new salad place (admittedly a copy of the infamous A Salad Concept on Neminhaemin) called Coco's Salad, which is located on the second floor of the newly refurbished Mee Chock Plaza. Great salad, I picked the fantastic homemade creamy balsamic dressing from a number of dressing choices. Choice of 8 toppings for 70 baht. The choices are not as extensive as at A Salad Concept. Furthermore the choices of lettuce are included in the 8 choices (unlike at A Salad Concept) which limits the choices of extras, but on the other hand, allows one to enjoy exclusively the type of lettuce one prefers. But the great news for those of us that live in San Sai is that we no longer have to venture clear out to Neminhaemin to enjoy a healthy salad.

It appears to be a Thai family business which opened 3 days ago and they are open 7 days a week.

Edited March 6, 2011 by venturalaw

[philw]

How sad..........

[gotlost]

Interesting comments as I and Mrs gotlost and some fiends had dinner st G&M this pass Wednesday evening. First time there in about 5 months. The Pork knuckles were small and the sausage and chips had been cooked in used burnt oil. We were the only party there and were not amused. We ave been going to G&M for 5 years but that may have been our lat trip. I only live 8 KM from the restaurant and I'm aware of the problem to find the place.

[Raindancer]

Greenside, all I can say is thank you for the very well written heads-up. I'll certainly avoid the place.

On another note, I fortunately discovered the new salad place (admittedly a copy of the infamous A Salad Concept on Neminhaemin) called Coco's Salad, which is located on the second floor of the newly refurbished Mee Chock Plaza. Great salad, I picked the fantastic homemade creamy balsamic dressing from a number of dressing choices. Choice of 8 toppings for 70 baht. The choices are not as extensive as at A Salad Concept. Furthermore the choices of lettuce are included in the 8 choices (unlike at A Salad Concept) which limits the choices of extras, but on the other hand, allows one to enjoy exclusively the type of lettuce one prefers. But the great news for those of us that live in San Sai is that we no longer have to venture clear out to Neminhaemin to enjoy a healthy salad.

It appears to be a Thai family business which opened 3 days ago and they are open 7 days a week.

Thanks for that. I will try out the salad bar you refer to in Mee Chok Plaza.

[anonymouse]

It's a shame that G&M's Sunday buffet has gone downhill, maybe it was just a bad day? I haven't been for a while but normally the place is pretty much packed by about 11am, so the buffet had probably been going for about two hours, no excuse for the lack of food but this was probably the reason it was some what depleted. I hope Gunter or someone who knows him gets shown this review and up's his game a bit.

[Greenside]

The post I linked to mentions it being packed out on Sunday afternoons. I figured it was probably lunch but an 11:00am start is very early, even for Thais!

Anyway, running out of spaghetti and fruit were minor quibbles compared with the rest of the experience and, although I didn't really highlight it in the OP I have to tell you that the back room where people were eating and certainly the area where the ice cream freezer was kept were really, really dirty. That area needs a serious amount of work if they expect to use it for dining and if the owner has any imagination he must see that if the public area is run down and needs cleaning then people will suspect the kitchen could use the same treatment.

I know I do.

[millwall_fan]

I guess in the restaurant business you'll always get guys who like what you do and others that don't. It doesn't in any way invalidate your comments, but you can't please all the people all the time. Just as a matter of interest, would you be prepared to tell us how much your bill was in the end, it could help the rest of us to put your comments in perspective.

[Greenside]

I guess in the restaurant business you'll always get guys who like what you do and others that don't. It doesn't in any way invalidate your comments, but you can't please all the people all the time. Just as a matter of interest, would you be prepared to tell us how much your bill was in the end, it could help the rest of us to put your comments in perspective.

The bill came to 470 baht for two adults and a child and included a couple of bottles of water. Not a lot, I grant you but extremely poor value compared with many of the other buffets available around town.

I noticed a house and car for sale advertised there in German and English and I'm wondering if the original proprietor is not as involved as before because it's really hard to imagine that it got such a good rep based on our experience. And when it comes down to it, dirt in restaurants isn't about pleasing customers, it's just a fairly basic requirement, even in third world countries.

Edited March 7, 2011 by Greenside

[DavidOxon]

Last time I was there, we were sitting eating, and an old farang biker guy came and sat at the next table and started smoking, disgusting. He seemed demanding of the owner who ran around after him before sitting with him. We moved tables when our obvious discomfort was ignored by the owner and the smoker.

Won't be going back.

David

[meadish_sweetball]

To add my two cents, I went on a Wednesday about 2 months ago. we were the only customers at the time. Ordered a la carte; mixed sausage plate, salad, sauerkraut, extra potatoes. Very good sausages and potatoes, decent salad, excellent (but not cheap) imported German beer. Overall we were quite happy with we got for the money, the service was fine if not spectacular, and the main dining room appeared clean enough. I will be going back at some point, but probably not to the Sunday brunch.

[vacationman]

We have eatten at G and M many times at the Sunday Buffet.

We arrived on Sunday, 6 March 2011 at 11.20 a.m and the place was already PACKED.

We got the LAST Table available which was located outside.

Everytime before we had a seat inside and got decent service.

However on sunday the Staff was almost no where to be found it seemed.

All the Buffet Food in the THREE different rooms were OUT of food at approx 12.15 p.m.

Therefore, we kept asking for them to bring more Ham and the Pork Pattie... which they did with

LONG Breaks in between.

I got to enjoy being a WATRESS for the day since we couldn't find anyone to bring ice for my hot beer.

Just went inside myself and got a bucket and filled it up with ice and gave it to who ever needed it.

If this was my first visit to the place I would probally never return.

Total bill for Two was 440 baht with one Chang Beer.

It should be noted that the place was PACKED with people and people standing waiting for a seat.

Apparently VERY Hungary people.... that ate all the prepared food.

Lesson Learned....

Arrive before 11 a.m. if you want a seat and food.

Lesson Learned Number 2 - if we ever go back again and the service is the same...

it will be our LAST Visit for sure.

The owner was NOT at the Resturant on Sunday.

[Greenside]

We have eatten at G and M many times at the Sunday Buffet.

We arrived on Sunday, 6 March 2011 at 11.20 a.m and the place was already PACKED.

We got the LAST Table available which was located outside.

Everytime before we had a seat inside and got decent service.

However on sunday the Staff was almost no where to be found it seemed.

All the Buffet Food in the THREE different rooms were OUT of food at approx 12.15 p.m.

Therefore, we kept asking for them to bring more Ham and the Pork Pattie... which they did with

LONG Breaks in between.

I got to enjoy being a WATRESS for the day since we couldn't find anyone to bring ice for my hot beer.

Just went inside myself and got a bucket and filled it up with ice and gave it to who ever needed it.

If this was my first visit to the place I would probally never return.

Total bill for Two was 440 baht with one Chang Beer.

It should be noted that the place was PACKED with people and people standing waiting for a seat.

Apparently VERY Hungary people.... that ate all the prepared food.

Lesson Learned....

Arrive before 11 a.m. if you want a seat and food.

Lesson Learned Number 2 - if we ever go back again and the service is the same...

it will be our LAST Visit for sure.

The owner was NOT at the Resturant on Sunday.

Sounds like the same place but HOW were the schweinshaxe SCHWEINSHAXE?

Edited March 7, 2011 by Greenside

[venturalaw]

To add my two cents, I went on a Wednesday about 2 months ago. we were the only customers at the time. Ordered a la carte; mixed sausage plate, salad, sauerkraut, extra potatoes. Very good sausages and potatoes, decent salad, excellent (but not cheap) imported German beer. Overall we were quite happy with we got for the money, the service was fine if not spectacular, and the main dining room appeared clean enough. I will be going back at some point, but probably not to the Sunday brunch.

It appears that the place is hit or miss. I'll pass. I like consistency like the lunch buffet at the Amari Rincon (until it closes next month that is).

[ThaiPauly]

I went there once, but I didn't, could not find it.

But a freind of mine who has been a few times raves about the place, that was about a year ago so maybe things have changed

[uwelong]

A lot of people pay for a VW - and than will drive a Mercedes!

[Greenside]

A lot of people pay for a VW - and than will drive a Mercedes!

Excuse me?

[Greenside]

A lot of people pay for a VW - and than will drive a Mercedes!

Duplicate confused post deleted.

Edited March 8, 2011 by Greenside

[lucky2103]

I understand that @Uwelong meant to say something like this:

"If you pay for a Volkswagen car, you cannot expect to drive home with a Benz."

Plain translation: You get what you pay for.

BTW: I have been to the place quite a few times and found the prices to be much lower than in Pattaya and bkk.

But to be honest, we tend to buy the meat stuff and take it home, where it will be prepared by my wife, who got the receipts via Video Jug (Example: Schnitzel

Meat and sausages at G&M are cheaper than the stuff sold at Top's and Carrefour as well....plus

Edited March 9, 2011 by lucky2103

[Greenside]

Having missed breakfast this morning due a crack of dawn appointment to get fined at CM Immigration, I stopped for lunch at The Grandview. 152 baht bought a decent salad with roast beef and a couple of bread rolls, assorted sushi, a choice of three or four western entrées, four Thai dishes, two kinds of rice, three or four different pasta alternatives, followed by Crepe Suzette and ice cream, Creme Caramel, two cups of reasonably good coffee and a bottle of water. Left untried today were at least half a dozen trays of fruit and little cake things which I didn't have the room to sample. As a bonus, I got friendly service, clean surroundings and a real napkin.

Now the Grandview is particularly good value but there are countless places that offer good lunch deals around town. I don't expect remotely the same levels of comfort from a country butcher but cleanish surroundings, a little bit of attention from the staff and food that tastes of something don't seem too much to ask for.

In this case I'd say we paid for a Honda City and got a Trabant. Benz don't figure at all.

[venturalaw]

Having missed breakfast this morning due a crack of dawn appointment to get fined at CM Immigration, I stopped for lunch at The Grandview. 152 baht bought a decent salad with roast beef and a couple of bread rolls, assorted sushi, a choice of three or four western entrées, four Thai dishes, two kinds of rice, three or four different pasta alternatives, followed by Crepe Suzette and ice cream, Creme Caramel, two cups of reasonably good coffee and a bottle of water. Left untried today were at least half a dozen trays of fruit and little cake things which I didn't have the room to sample. As a bonus, I got friendly service, clean surroundings and a real napkin.

Now the Grandview is particularly good value but there are countless places that offer good lunch deals around town. I don't expect remotely the same levels of comfort from a country butcher but cleanish surroundings, a little bit of attention from the staff and food that tastes of something don't seem too much to ask for.

In this case I'd say we paid for a Honda City and got a Trabant. Benz don't figure at all.

The Grandview has been a great deal for a long time. There is better quality and more choices at other restaurant buffets, but for more than twice the price, i.e. the Amari Rincon (until the end of this month). But the Grandview has always been a super deal because the quality is quite good for a very low price. And the service is superior - better than most places.

Edited March 10, 2011 by venturalaw

[PlanetX]

I used to go to the Grandview everyday for lunch and the food was very good but the service was fantastic.